Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us; And confirm for us the work of our hands; Yes, confirm the work of our hands.
Psalm 90:17

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Home again!




Had about a week away to attend my
sister's wedding and visit with family. Nice time! Our only issue was what Jacie would wear since she prefers boys' suits and I prefer she look at least a little feminine. We settled on a jacket and capri set, she chose a lavender linen-type and we bought a lace trimmed tank to wear under. Her jacket does have the 'peek-a-boo' lace strip down the back as in the pattern picture but I didn't get a picture of that!



I also had the pleasure of making their cake-- it's just stacked layers and fresh flowers (that matched the bouquets) to decorate. (Chocolate w/ icing filled on the bottom, white w/ sliced strawberries filling in the middle and marble/ w/icing on top. And the weather was gorgeous! Now-- back to Shakespeare!

Friday, May 14, 2010

Working on Designs-


"As You Like It", Shakespeare in the Grove 2010, is officially underway with the introductions and script reading last night. I got my sketches done. They're never exactly what walks out on the stage but they're in the ball park. I have a terrific helper this year-- she is already working on one of the designs and she's raiding her own stash for fabrics! So cool! I have had people express interest in helping with costumes before but they usually fall through. This one looks like a keeper! (And it doesn't hurt that her son is in the cast... the helpers are a lot easier to find when that's the case.) The picture shows my dining table during the designing stage-- the script, lots of paper, pencils and erasers, a few copies of vintage pattern envelopes for go-bys, Prismacolor pencils and a really large glass(es) of iced tea. Golden.

Thursday, May 6, 2010

An outside project

One of the things I really wanted to complete this spring was this display. It sits to the right of our front door to welcome folks and give 'em an idea of what we're about. It started with an old sewing machine my sister gave me. It had been in her garage for years. It was in it's original table but, sadly, the wood was so badly warped and mildewed it was not salvageable. Since I couldn't save it, my dad helped me remove the machine and the iron treadle/stand and pack it in my little Rio for the trip home from NH to VA, where it sat on the porch since last September.


Last week, B and I bought some wood to make a tray and I hit the treadle with a touch of flat black spray paint. I wiped it down to remove the dust and cobwebs but I didn't try to cover up or remove the rust. I liked the look.




We stained the tray and while it was drying I cleaned up the machine with some Mr. Clean. I should note that there was no hope of using this machine- it would need a complete re-build so I was okay with re-purposing it for decorative use! I had to use a light touch with the Mr. Clean so it wouldn't ruin the paint. Then I sprayed it with a clear protective spray.



I secured the tray to the treadle base, set the machine on it with some scrap wood to level it and arranged some flower pots I had around. I chose flowers and vines that would offer color and green fill, as well as different levels try it make it pretty and interesting. The flowers represent my husband (the aforementioned 'B'); he loves his flowers. (The cow is also 'him'!) And I figure if you've been reading me, you know what the sewing machine stands for! This picture was taken the day after planting. It has since filled out a little more.


I think the amazing part of this whole project was I dreamed it up on the ride home from our visit last fall--- and less than a year later it has actually come to fruition. That HAS to be a record for me! Thanks, B!

No time-

How do you know it's showtime around here? No blog posts! "Smoke on the Mountain-The Homecoming" opens tomorrow. It's a fun show with good music and funny bits. Not a real challenge costume-wise. It's set in the late 40's, very country-ish and the loft had plenty of clothes to choose from, plus the cast chipped in their own stuff so all I had to do was co-ordinate. I wouldn't have even spent a cent on this show except we opted to get a 3/4 wig for one of the girls. Super nice, talented cast-- this was a fun show to do.
Also getting underway--- this summer's Shakespeare in the Grove. Has it really been a year since "Macbeth"? Wow! This year's offering is "As You Like It" and, for reasons unknown to my understanding, the director is setting it around 1969. MadMen meets Hippies meets Brady Bunch-- oy vey! Although we've discussed where we (HE!) want(s) to go with the costumes, I have to submit more detailed designs tomorrow morning. Do you think I'm ready yet? 'Course not! Between schooling and child care and trying to fix up outside I have had no time to boost the Etsy store supply or sew for fun. I hope that changes next week-- my sister's wedding is in a couple of weeks and I wanted to make a dress to wear. (I wanted to lose weight too, but that didn't happen either.) So much still needs to be done outside but I really would like a day of rain so I can't work out there and can sew guilt-free!